This blog began through a NIFA grant for Missouri Beginning Farmers. It continues today as a way for beginning farmers to learn about new ideas and to hear about upcoming events of interest. It is maintained by Debi Kelly (kellyd@missouri.edu).

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As an Extension Associate with the University of Missouri, I work with beginning farmers, small farms, alternative agriculture and organic farming. I am also the Co-coordinator for the Missouri Sustainable Agriculture and Research (SARE) Education Professional Development Program (PDP).

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Thursday, April 30, 2015

But
other animals are going their way precisely because they are no longer
preferred table fare. The Livestock Conservancy,
a North Carolina organization that advocates for the preservation of rare and
vanishing breeds, keeps an official list of nearly 200 domesticated birds and
mammals which today are at risk of vanishing. The group is trying to generate
interest in these breeds, among both consumers and farmers, to keep the animals
from going extinct.

"We
sometimes say, 'You need to eat them to save them — just don't eat them all,'
" says Ryan Walker, the marketing and communications manager of the
conservancy.

The Red Wattle, a pig
with exceptionally juicy flesh, and the Randall Lineback, a cow that produces beautiful rose-red veal, are two success stories — breeds that
were close to oblivion but that foodie ranchers have revived.

But
others haven't been so lucky. And it may be because lately no one has wanted to
eat them.

There
are fewer than 200 Choctaw hogs left,
for example. This pig was prized by theNative
American Choctaw tribe as a meat source. But displacement of the tribe led to
the breed's downfall. Today, Choctaw hogs live on just a few farms in a single
county in Oklahoma. The animals are still extremely vulnerable to inbreeding
and, Walker says, to natural disasters. "They could potentially get wiped
out by one tornado," he says.

Choctaw Hog

But
Walker says the conservancy has received calls from people around the country
interested in rearing the pigs, and he guesses that within several years the
breed's population will start to increase. If the Choctaw is lucky, it should
start appearing in butcher shops for the first time.

Many,
if not most, heritage food animals are said to have a flavor that's distinct
from modern mainstream breeds – flavor that can now be appreciated by foodies
seeking novelty and quality.But many of these breeds
have been swiftly declining since about 70 years ago, when certain breeds began
to dominate industrial livestock production.

Before
World War II, farms were on average smaller and regional variations common in
both crops and livestock. But one by one, regional breeds were supplanted by
just a handful that were selectively bred to reproduce and grow faster,
withstand more cramped confinement, and generate more meat, milk or eggs.

Meanwhile,
hundreds of livestock breeds that were once commercially relevant have nearly
vanished. Among them are several dozen that The Livestock Conservancy lists as
critically endangered—like the Texas longhorn cattle,
the cotton patch goose,
the modern game chicken and
the San Clemente goat,
which originated on the rugged San Clemente Island, in the Channel Islands
chain off California. Through genetic isolation and natural selection, a unique
breed emerged. The nonnative goats became a hated pest in the 1970s, and most
were removed from the island or shot. Still, a few are raised on a small scale
for food, mostly in the Southwest.

Jacob Sheep

Sometimes,
breeds believed to be lost are rediscovered—like the Beltsville small white turkey.
It was thought extinct until 2014, when the Livestock Conservancy discovered
that scientists with the University of Georgia were keeping a small research
flock.

"They
didn't even realize what they had until we saw the turkeys," says Walker.
"We thought the breed was extinct, and now they're back on the
table," as heritage breeders are working to restore them to abundance.
This process involves matching up prospective mates and selectively removing
other individuals from the breeding pool. Ultimately, several "very lucky
farmers" got to eat Beltsville small whites last Thanksgiving, Walker
says.

The key
to saving critically endangered breeds is finding people to breed and grow the
populations. Walker says his organization, without land to rear its own
animals, helps rare breeds by coordinating meetings between farmers who own the
animals.

Other
times, small farmers strike out on their own to get their hands on rare breeds
and grow their own herds. Several years ago, Amy Grabish and her husband Larry
Fox contacted the American Mulefoot Hog
Association,hoping to start their own passel. They bought several
animals, and today they keep about a dozen pigs but also fainting goats, Welsh
harlequin ducks and American buff geese.

Houdan Chicken

Raising
such animals is not especially profitable, Grabish says, since some of them
grow more slowly, and in some cases are more temperamental, than mainstream
breeds. Fainting goats, for example, fall over when startled.

But she
and her husband chose to raise heritage breeds partly because they are hardier
than mainstream breeds.

"We
wanted animals that would be comfortable outside," Grabish tells The Salt.
Her mulefoot pigs have a coat of hair that protects them from sunburn in the
summer and keeps them warm in the winter. Though the animals are provided with
a shed, they don't use it. "They just hunker down under the eucalyptus
trees," she says.

Today,
in spite of the efforts of numerous ranchers and organizations focused on
preserving rare breeds, some are going extinct. Almost one livestock breed has
vanished every month around the world for at least the past six years,
according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization.

The
U.S. Department of Agriculture supports a program for
preserving heritage livestock breeds. The idea is to keep alive unique genetic
traits that could someday come in handy for breeders who are trying to create
hardier, or tastier, animals. In the American West, Walker says, demand is
growing for drought tolerant cattle that can withstand the unusually dry
conditions that may become the new normal going into the future. While many
rare breeds are kept alive on small farms, the USDA has preserved some
cryogenically—mainly via samples of frozen semen.

Farmers
like Grabish and Fox are doing their part to keep rare breeds alive, though
Grabish says they are reluctant to put their animals in contact with those from
other farms, due to concerns about disease transmission. Their own little
property provides only enough land to keep a few animals, which ultimately are
used to supply the family's own freezer and a circle of local restaurants. When
they sell breeding stock to other farmers, their hope, Grabish says, is that
the new owners will use the animals for breeding with others of their type.

"Because
these animals are so rare, their genetics need to be kept clean," she
says, "for science and for the gene pool."

(By Alastair Bland is a freelance writer based in San Francisco)(Photos from the Livestock Conservancy)

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Off in the backwoods near Laurie, there's a
560 acre expanse of land where the University of Missouri's Center for
Agroforestry is running a research farm.

The term may be new to some, but for Senior
Outreach Specialist Gene Garrett, it's the future of Missouri farming.

"You've got a lot of timber. The question
is, what do you do with it?" he asks.

The research farm, owned and volunteered by
Doug Allen, aims to help answer that question. On the farm, the Agroforestry
Center is running many experiments to find the best way Missouri farmers can
cultivate their land for maximum profitability, health and conservation.

"The best thing about this farm is the
location," says Garrett. "It's great for drawing in the Ozark Region
locals. We can show them how to take something they already have, and make it
healthy, vigorous and profitable."

With a solid idea on how things should be
done, the University has begun to implement many ideas which have the capacity
to revolutionize the Missouri Ozarks agriculture industry. Among these ideas,
Garrett says, are very practical uses for local landowners.

Most landowners in the region have land that
is heavily forested, and practically useless for any type of conventional
farming. That's where agroforestry comes into play. The idea behind
agroforestry is to help landowners realize the full potential of the natural
resources in Missouri.

For example, Garrett explains the concept of
Timber Stand Improvement, or TSI for short. This is a method of thinning out
wooded areas, and in the same move, increasing the health of the land by inviting
more wildlife and growth potential. Then in the future, the trees will be
healthy and strong enough for use as lumber.

"There are resources to help with
this," Garrett says. "Just contact your regional forester and ask
about Timber Stand Improvement."

Afterwards, you can farm those wooded areas
with crops that enjoy the shaded understory of a lightly forested area. The
research farm is running experiments on that as well in an effort to discover
the absolute best options there are. The center holds annual displays on how
and what to do in order to get started.

But the research focus isn't exclusively on
wooded areas. The farm also takes notice of the small pockets of open land that
are maybe five or so acres on many Missouri properties. On these, Garrett says,
you have many options.

He has placed an orchard on one such pocket
within the farm. In it, he grows three rows each of walnut, chestnut and pecan
trees. But this orchard has a twist.

"I believe in taking the landowner and
showing them what it's going to look like," Garrett says.

To this end, his orchard has the five best
varieties of each nut tree growing in his orchard. Local farmers and landowners
can come in and see what trees will best suit their property. From there,
Garrett can help them decide how to proceed.

But Garrett isn't only focusing on fruiting
trees. He has a field dedicated to growing pine trees as well.

The pine trees are a hybrid - bred
specifically to grow long needles and thrive in Missouri weather. The needles
of these trees are harvested for mulch, which Garrett states is a far better
option than wood chips. He also explains that pine straw is competitive with
corn and soy crops, with a budding market and comparable prices.

And there are even more benefits to growing
pine trees.

Garrett has designed the pine grove on the
research farm to allow for alley cropping. Alley cropping is a method of
cultivating other crops in the open spaces between the tree lines while the
pine trees are growing. Additionally, there are smaller alleys between tree
lines, where Garrett is setting up wildlife habitats. This specific grove was
set up with quail in mind, and Garrett says he expects to see a population boom
in the coming years as the farm is developed.

All of these methods were designed
specifically to help Missouri landowners and farmers. With a lot of research, a
dash of common sense and some experimenting, the farm continues to grow as an
example of what the Agroforestry Center considers an ideal land plot in the
Ozarks. But there is always more to do, and the farm plans to be there for a
long time to come.

Saturday, April 25, 2015

This webinar, broadcast October 25, 2012, focuses on tools and techniques for small-scale crop production. National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) Agriculture Specialist Andy Pressman discusses the importance of investing in good quality and well-designed tools, their different purposes, and how to use them to properly plant and maintain crops.

Friday, April 17, 2015

Thursday, April 16, 2015

There are
many companies out there selling high tunnels. Some are worthwhile to buy and
build. Others are just made too light and not worth the effort putting up.
Hopefully I can help you out in this. I will point out, that my company (Morgan
County Seeds LLC) does sell high tunnels and greenhouse.

First of all
let’s look at steel gauges. This is the thickness of the steel. In high
tunnels, it is the wall thickness of the tubing. Steel gauges for high tunnels
usually range from 17 gauges all the way to a 12 gauge. No that is not a
mistake; the numbers are in the correct order.

Now let’s
look at what the numbers mean. When you see steel tubing or sheeting gauge,
make a fraction out of it. For instance if you have a 13 gauge it would become
1/13 of an inch. In other words, the gauge means the number of sheets or tubing
wall thickness it takes to make an inch in thickness. The thicker the tubing
is, the more strength it has. In tubing, 13-gauge wall thickness has more
strength then a 17-gauge tube. Plus if you are putting in a screw, there is
more meat there to hold unto.

The next
thing we need to look at is the tubing diameter. In all of the high tunnels out
there, tubing sizes range from 1.315” all the way up to 2 3/8” diameter. What
does this mean? Talking with Neal Zimmerman from Zimmerman’s Welding I found
out that each time you increase the tubing diameter by 1/3, the strength
increases by 66%. That can make a big difference. If the tubing size from one
company is 1.7” diameter and the other is 2.27” diameter, there is 66% more
strength in the 2.27” tubing. This one area that some high tunnel manufactures
are cutting corners on cost. It also cuts down on the strength of the tunnel.

Bracing

Now let’s
look at bracing. Some have lots of bracing and others have almost no bracing or
none. For strength of a building you need bracing to help it stay square or
upright. On buildings with a sheet metal cover, the sheet metal can work as
bracing. On a high tunnel you do not have any sheet metal on the outside for
bracing. Greenhouse plastic does not brace. In fact it will stretch if pulled
to hard.

Here are
some of the common types of bracing used in high tunnel construction. Corner
bracing. This brace is usually placed in between the first and 2nd sidewall
post at all 4 corners of the high tunnel. This helps keep the corners of the
tunnel in line. Some manufactures use them and others cut corners here and do
not use them to save a little money on the cost of the high tunnel. It also leaves
a weak spot in the tunnel.

Roof bracing, is another spot some cut the cost of a tunnel. These cheap
tunnels rely on the purlins to help brace the roof. A very poor choice. Other
tunnel manufactures use several braces in the roof. Usually the bracing starts
at the peak of the tunnel on the first bow and goes at angle to the 2nd bow.
Some also continue this bracing from the 2nd bow to the third bow. This is done
on both sides of the center purlin. When standing under the tunnel and looking
up, it will make V. Both ends of the tunnel roof should have this bracing.

Side to side
bow bracing. Some provide this option and others do not. There are several
types used for this. One is just a long brace from one side of the bow to the
other side. This makes a small truss in the peak of the tunnel. It will help
with wind and snow loads.

The other
popular one is called a W truss. On the bottom of the W truss, there is a long
pipe. This pipe fastens to the bow at each end. Several feet in, at a angle a
short brace goes from the bow to the lower pipe of the W truss. At this point,
another brace takes off and goes to the center of the peak of the bow. This is
done on both sides of the bow. When looking at it, it makes capital W. This is
by far the strongest bracing you can get for your bows. If each bow has one of
these W trusses, it will hold a lot more snow or ice.

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

The 2015
Managing Risks for Small Ruminants Workshop sponsored by Lincoln
University Cooperative Extension Small Ruminants Program & University of
Illinois Extension will be held on May 1-2, 2015 at George W.
Carver Farm, 3804 Bald Hill Road, Jefferson City, MO
65101.

History: Lincoln University Cooperative Extension Small
Ruminant Program and the University of Illinois Extension have joined
collaborative efforts to bring a pilot program to central Missouri that
will address the concerns of small ruminant producers and risks faced by many
beginning producers.

There
are risks in everything we do, and livestock production is no
exception. If raising goats and sheep; we encounter
many obstacles that are considered risks depending on the type of production
goals one might have.

Goal: This program if successful will be developed
into a significant educational series that will culminate over three years of
progressive training for small ruminant producers in an effort to increase
the proficiency of knowledge and independence of goat and sheep production in
the Midwest. Certificate of competition will be given.

Topics: Low-input management, toxic plants, when to
call the vet, drug use, animal disease traceability, disaster preparedness,
parasites, and how to efficiently raise a market goat or lamb are offered in
this pilot program.

Monday, April 13, 2015

A
pond can be a valuable asset to a farm or suburban landowner according to Bob
Schultheis, a natural resource engineering specialist with University of
Missouri Extension.

"A
well-planned and built pond can provide livestock water, fishing opportunities,
soil erosion control, fire protection, and a nice place to relax," said
Schultheis. "But a good, usable pond is not inexpensive to build.
Depending on the geology of the site, a half-acre pond could cost between
$11,000 and $15,000."

According
to Schultheis, undersized and leaky ponds are the two most common problems he
encounters.

"A
properly-sized farm pond will have one acre of surface area for each 10-15
acres of watershed that drains into it and be at least eight feet deep. Cutting
corners on size to save money only ends up costing more later in repairing
erosion damage and downstream neighbor relations, and in dealing with aquatic
weed problems," said Schultheis.

Leaky
ponds are frequently due to the wrong soil being used for sealing or because
the right soil was improperly compacted. When building or enlarging a pond in
the Ozarks, Schultheis says to be sure to do it when the soil is moist and
sticky, never when the soil is dry.

"Many
of the red and yellow clay soils in the Ozarks are quite leaky in their natural
state. Pulverizing these soils with a disk breaks down their blocky soil
structure and keeping them moist during the recompaction process and after
construction will help the pond better hold water," said Schultheis.

Compaction
of several four to six-inch thick layers of moist clay in the pond bottom will
usually be needed to assure a seal. Additives such as bentonite clay or soda
ash may need to be mixed with some soils to keep them from leaking.

"Don't
expect a bulldozer to do good soil compaction," said Schultheis.

Bulldozers
have a large "footprint" that spreads out their weight, resulting in
ground pressure of 7-13 psi, which is no greater than a person just standing on
the ground. A better choice is a wheel tractor and disk (15-45 psi ground
pressure), or a sheepsfoot roller (300+ psi ground pressure), to compact each
clay layer before adding the next one.

"A
well-built pond should fill within one year, and seepage plus evaporation
should be 12 inches or less in hot summer months and 4 inches or less in winter
months," said Schultheis.

Excellent
resources for planning, building and managing ponds are available through the
federal Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Missouri Department of
Conservation and University of Missouri Extension. A hot-linked list of these
resources can be found online here.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

The watermelon crop has declined dramatically
in Washington because of disease. But Washington State University researchers
are developing a solution that involves grafting watermelon plants onto squash
and other vine plant root stocks.

“We’ve lost about a third of our state’s
watermelon production over the last 10 years because of Verticillium wilt,”
said Carol Miles, a professor of vegetable horticulture at the WSU Northwestern
Washington Research and Extension Center in Mount Vernon. “Growers have
switched to other crops that are less susceptible.”

Today, there are about 550 acres of
watermelon grown in Washington, with a value of approximately $5 million.

Miles said growers can lose 25-75 percent of
their yield to the disease – but this loss does not occur until the very end of
the growing season. That’s when the damage from Verticillium appears.

The fungus also affects tomatoes, potatoes,
eggplant and many other crops and plants.

Watermelon grafting used
worldwide

Last fall, Miles received a $138,000 grant
from the state agriculture department to look into grafting, a solution that
doesn’t require fumigants. She is also working with a national team of
researchers on a $3 million U.S. Department of Agriculture grant. Her portion
is $171,000 to look at grafting tomato and eggplant.

Grafting involves cutting a young seedling
from its roots and attaching it to the roots of a related plant that is disease
resistant. The grafted plant produces fruits that are equivalent or better in
quality than those of non-grafted plants.

“Grafting is very old technology, going back
over 1,500 years in China,” Miles said. “Farmers in Japan have used grafted
watermelon since the 1920's. In the Mediterranean region, farmers have been
using grafted watermelon, tomato and eggplant for almost 20 years.

“We just need to find out what works best for
our region and we’ll solve the Verticillium wilt problem,” she said.

Testing root stocks in the field

Her research involves testing which plants
work best together under Washington growing conditions and which root stocks are
most resistant to Verticillium wilt.

The first goal is to increase the survival
rate for newly grafted watermelon plants. If only 25 percent survive, the effort
is not worth it, Miles said.

The second goal is to find successful plant
combinations that are disease resistant and have equivalent fruit yield and
quality, compared to non-grafted plants grown in healthy soil. Miles and her
team are testing watermelon grafted to pumpkin, squash and bottle gourd because
they are all resistant to Verticillium wilt.

This year will be the second of a two-year
field study. While these studies actually started about five years ago under a
previous grant, Miles and her team are applying new information that they have
learned along the way. They will have two full years of testing in commercial
fields by the end of the grants.

Monday, April 6, 2015

In January 2002, USDA formally implemented the Good
Agricultural Practices and Good Handling Practices (GAP & GHP) audit
verification program. This voluntary
program is offered to the fruit and vegetable industry to verify an operation’s
efforts to minimize the risk of contamination of fresh fruits, vegetables, and
nuts by microbial pathogens. The program
does not guarantee the product is free from microbial contamination, but
verifies the participant has taken proactive measure to reduce the risk of
contamination by adhering to generally recognized industry best practices. The responsibility for product safety and the
continued observance of best practices rests with the operation producing and
handling the fresh product.

Implement GAP on a farm makes sense since the measures
reduce the risk of foodborne illnesses for both growers and consumers. The MO Dept of Ag has received funding from
FDA which allows us to cover 75% of the cost of GAP certification for Missouri
vegetable producers. If you are GAP
certified or are thinking of becoming GAP certified, the cost share is a sweet
deal.

To participate:

Develop a written farm safety plan

Have a GAP inspection conducted

Submit a copy of the passing GAP inspect score sheet

Submit a copy of the GAP inspection invoice

The funding is available for a limited time so please
contact the MO Dept of Ag at 573-522-4170.

Friday, April 3, 2015

University of Missouri Extension and Lincoln
University Cooperative Extension and Research are working together to put on a
sheep and goat workshop on April 18th beginning at 10:00 a. m. at the Land O
Lakes Youth Fairgrounds (3390 E 380 Rd, El Dorado Springs, Mo. 64744) in El
Dorado, Springs, Mo.

This 6 hour workshop will include lecture,
discussion, and hands on activity related to

The cost of the class is $35 per person and
the limit on the class is 25 people. Cost will cover all material, refreshments
and lunch. For more information on the class or to register contact the Cedar
County MU Extension Center (113 South Street, Stockton, Mo. 65785) at 417 – 276
– 3313 or by email at cedarco@missouri.edu. Need to be registered and paid by
April 15th.